Gunmen struck again in the early hours of Wednesday in the troubled Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, killing no fewer than 30 persons when they attacked Kwahaslalek village, in the area.
It was gathered that the victims, who were mostly women and children, had run to the house of a community leader in the area on Tuesday night for safety following an earlier unrest during the day in Mangu town when the gunmen surrounded them and killed all of them
A community leader in the area, Mark Haruna, who confirmed the death toll to newsmen in Jos, the state capital, on Wednesday, said: “What happened at SabonGari and Mangu town yesterday afternoon (Tuesday) was just a distraction so that the attention of the people will be shifted away from the villages.
“For the second time, my village Kwahaslalek (behind NYSC camp) came under attack by gunmen yesterday (Tuesday) night. They came at about 12:30 am and killed over 25 people, mostly women and children.”
The Chairman of Mwaghavul Development Association, Joseph Gwankat, also confirmed the killing, describing it as callous.
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“I couldn’t sleep last night as a result of what happened in Mangu town during the day yesterday. Now, I have just been told Kwahaslalek village was attacked last night and about 30 people were killed .
“From what I was told, the unrest in Mangu town yesterday created fears in many communities. Some people in the village went and evacuated their loved ones and assembled them in a place where they thought was safe.
“So in the night, the killers went to Kwahaslalek village where the people mostly women and children were assembled and killed all of them,” he said
Speaking further, the chairman, who condemned the killing, added: “I was told that no security was on ground to save the villagers. This act is pure wickedness. How can people who are in their villages be targets of constant attacks and killings without anything being done to stop the perpetrators?”
The spokesman for the state police command, Alabo Alfred, said he had yet to get the report of the incident when contacted.
“I have not received any report on that. Let me call my Commander. We will investigate the incident if actually something like that happened,” the PPRO said
It will be recalled that the Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, declared a 24-hour curfew on the Mangu LGA on Tuesday (yesterday).